


like running across rooftops

by pe_as_inapod



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Gen, Identity Reveal, Reveal, idk how to tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-14
Updated: 2020-11-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:29:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,119
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27556114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pe_as_inapod/pseuds/pe_as_inapod
Summary: The two breezed through the obstacle course like they ran across the rooftops of Paris.***When gym class prompts the 15-year-old students of Mme. Bustier's class to run through an obstacle course, no one expects klutzy Marinette or home-schooled model Adrien to breeze through the course, but they do.A reveal fic.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, if you squint
Comments: 22
Kudos: 403





	like running across rooftops

“Look, dude, I may not be a couch potato, but I’m not an athlete either. There’s no way I’m getting past this course!” Nino complained as he stared at the obstacle course that was set up in the school’s open-air courtyard.

“Oh c’mon, Nino. It’s not that bad,” Adrien said, trying to reassure his friend. “Besides, it could be fun!”

M. D’Argencourt decided to let the students run through an obstacle course as a project and most of the students were cool with it at first, but looking at the obstacle course, most of the class wanted to forfeit in favor of a written test. The less athletically inclined huddled amongst themselves, glancing over at the obstacle course in front of them. The athletes ( _*cough*_ Alix and Kim _*cough*_ ), threw taunts and bets at each other, vowing to compete on who would do better. As for Chloé… Well…

The moment it was announced as the project last week, the young heiress adamantly refused to cooperate. She loudly—and rather shrilly—expressed that the project was _‘utterly useless’_ and would _‘ruin her perfectly gorgeous blonde hair’_ ; hence her absence from this class. In all honesty, the teen model thanked every higher power that existed that the mayor’s daughter opted to skip class.

He looked over his friend’s shoulder to get a look at the obstacle course.

The course seemed to have 8 stages—give or take. The obstacles didn’t even seem that bad: rotating logs, monkey bars, a few jumps, climbs, and whatnot.

By the looks of it, the course wasn’t _that_ hard. Maybe a little challenging, yes, but not impossible.

But then again, not everyone got a workout from akuma battles and running across rooftops.

Adrien heard his friend snort beside him. “Please, not everyone’s an athlete like you, bro.”

“Nino, I may have a lot of extracurriculars, but that doesn’t make me an athlete!” the blonde protested. _And neither does being a superhero_ , he thought dryly.

“So, boys, whatcha talkin’ about?”

The familiar voice made both teens whirl around to find Alya and Marinette behind them.

“Oh, hey, Alya, Marinette,” the blonde greeted, receiving a short greeting from Alya, and a shy smile and a wave from a rosy-cheeked Marinette.

“Oh, nothing really. Just talking about how my bro, Adrien, doesn’t think that this obstacle course is hard,” Nino grumbled, replying to Alya’s question.

The brunette furrowed her brow, looked at the obstacle course, and winced. “Yikes,” she remarked. “I’m gonna have to go with Nino on this one. That looks _hard_.” She turned to Marinette. “What do you think, Mari?”

The raven-head cocked her head to the side and slightly furrowed her brow in thought. “It’s hard, but I don’t think it’s impossible.”

 _Wait, did I just see a weird gleam in her eyes or something?_ The blonde mentally shook off the thought and turned to his spectacled friend. “See, Nino, that’s two votes against the course being impossible.”

The other teen narrowed his eyes at the raven-head and the blonde. “Well, sorry I’m not as active as you two.”

“Well, you _do_ follow me around when I’m filming Ladybug and Chat Noir. You’re plenty active,” Alya teased.

Nino huffed but kept quiet.

The four friends continued their idle chatter (with Alya and Nino bantering and a blushing Marinette managing to properly converse with Adrien) until M. D’Argencourt announced his arrival and called for the students’ attention.

“Alright, children, I do believe that everyone is here, yes?”

“Um, Chloé won’t be able to come today, Monsieur. She isn’t feeling well,” Sabrina piped up.

The older man mumbled something that sounded eerily like _‘good riddance’_ to Adrien’s ears before he spoke again. “Well, she’ll have to take a makeup class if she doesn’t want to fail. On another note, that means everyone can have a partner.”

The class erupted in whispers and murmurs before their teacher called for their attention once more. “Settle down, settle down. I already picked the pairings at random so you’ll have to blame the randomizer for your partner.” Some students groaned their complaints.

“Alright, enough, enough!” M. D’Argencourt boomed. “Just line up with your pair and then we can get this over with. Lila and Max, Alix and Mylène, Kim and Sabrina …”

The students complied and began to line up in front of the obstacle course’s starting line. Adrien listened in rapt attention for his name and his partner’s. Even if most of the class didn’t want to participate, he wanted to. Hawkmoth had been inactive for nearly two weeks now. Although that wasn’t unusual and he finally got some much-needed rest, he needed to let his pent-up energy out on something other than the stuff he had in his room.

 _Besides,_ he thought, _since there isn’t the threat of an akuma or a beeping miraculous around, this could be fun!_

He nearly bounced up and down on his feet as their teacher continued calling out names. “…Ivan and Nathaniel, and last but not the least, Marinette and Adrien.”

The blonde’s face brightened and he turned to his side to see his friend beaming back at him with a competitive glint in her eyes. “Hope you can keep up, Agreste,” she teased.

Adrien was momentarily taken aback before he let a small smirk grace his lips. “Oh, don’t you worry your pretty little head, Mari.”

She mimicked his expression. “We’ll see.”

Their attention was immediately diverted to the side of the line where their teacher was blowing on his whistle. “Alright, then! Before we begin, I’ll give you all a briefing. First of all, if you can’t pass through an obstacle, you have to go through it again and again until you can get through. This course is meant to implement all of the activities I let you participate in for the past meetings.

Now for the grading! If you manage to finish the course in 10 minutes or less, you get an A+. If you finish it in 15 minutes, but more than 10, you get an A. In 20 minutes, you get a B. Any more than that, and you get a C. If you don’t finish the course but pass through at least 4 of the 8 obstacles, you’ll have to deal with a D. If you don’t even try, well, you fail. And remember! This is a paired activity. You students are paired so that you can help each other finish this course. If one finishes the course and the other doesn’t, I’ll have to grade you two by your average grade. So, you better make sure to carry your own weight while helping each other! Any questions?” There were some who groaned but no one raised their hands.

“Excellent! Lila, Max, get to the starting line. Everyone else, sit with your pair.” The students complied.

“Lila, Max, are you ready?” said their teacher, his head turned towards the mentioned students. The two nodded.

“To starting position! Ready, set… _Prrrtttt!_ ” The shrill sound of the whistle echoed slightly around the courtyard and the pair trudged forward.

As the 6 other pairs before the young model and designer passed through the course, Adrien was thrumming with anticipation. When he snuck glances to his side, he saw that Marinette was, too. Every once in a while, their gazes would meet and competitive smirks would grace their lips before they both turned to their classmates who were currently running the obstacle course.

So far, none of the pairs were able to break Kim and Sabrina’s record of 14 minutes and 42 seconds (turns out the girl was more athletic than expected, but then again, she followed Chloé around almost everywhere and was seen—more often than not—to be carrying hers and Chloé’s stuff in her arms). Everyone else managed the time range of somewhere between 17 to 25 minutes. The record was finally broken—by a hair’s breadth—by Alya and Nino, who finished in 14 minutes and 27 seconds (looks like running around Paris following the local superheroes helped their grades). By the time Ivan and Nathaniel had finished the course, almost two hours had passed and at this point, the blonde was pretty much filled to the brim with excited energy. When his and Marinette’s names were finally— _finally_ —called, he practically shot to his feet before holding his hand out to Marinette. She hesitated before she took it gladly, seemingly as enthusiastic as he was.

The pair almost bounced to the starting line where Adrien dropped his partner’s hand but turned his head to give her a look; _a challenge_. She blinked owlishly for a moment before returning his look with one of her own. _Huh_ , he thought. _For a second there, she almost looked like—_

“To starting position!”

M. D’Argencourt’s voice shook the blonde out of his reverie and both he and Marinette dropped to their knees and followed their teacher’s cue.

“Ready!”

The two raised one of their legs as excited smiles tugged at the corner of their lips.

“Set!”

Their bodies tensed and their smiles widened—

“ _Prrrrrtttt!_ ”

Marinette shot off like a bullet and Adrien’s eyes widened for a split second before he let his smile turn into a full-blown Chat-like grin.

With that, he let go and bolted after his partner.

* * *

The class knew that Marinette and Adrien were athletic.

Despite her notorious clumsiness, the raven-head was very capable of many physical feats: running for extended periods of time, lifting heavy objects, being limber and flexible, and the like. They all chalked it up to living in the hustle and bustle of a bakery all her life. As for Adrien, they all knew he did sports on the side so they chalked off his athleticism to that.

Gym class also seemed to be the time when those two really opened up. The aspiring designer got a touch more competitive and confident, stuttered less around her crush, and showed a sassy side to her peers. The young model, on the other hand, was noticeably more carefree; if his small smirks, competitive quips, and jokes (mostly puns, really) were anything to go by.

Add the fact that they’ve been getting straight A’s for the past year in gym class, they really shouldn’t be surprised that the pair would do great.

But _this?_

They were going through the obstacles like it was as easy as breathing; they used handsprings to go over walls, ran over the rotating logs in seconds, and oh sweet Lord, did they just _flip through several monkey bars?_

That wasn’t all. If the onlookers thought that the pair’s skill as individuals was good, their teamwork was _flawless_.

Whenever Marinette’s clumsiness kicks in and she’s on the verge of failing a landing or slipping off a rock wall, Adrien catches her then proceeds to either let her down from his arms or give her a boost that helps her cross the obstacle faster. Whenever the blonde hesitates for a split second in the face of a certain obstacle, the raven-head moves to his side and utters a few words to him. After that, he mutters a few words back with a flirty smirk and a bow; this earns him an eye roll and a nudge to the chest from his partner before they’re off to running—no, _breezing_ —through the other obstacles once more.

The entire class—and their teacher—can only gawk at the two.

And now, as the two leapt off an 8-foot jump, landed gracefully on the traverse ropes, and proceeded to banter as they flipped over to the next obstacle, everyone had different reactions.

M. D’Argencourt was both reeling from shock while beaming in pride at his students.

Kim and Alix were itching to challenge them the moment they finished that course.

Nino, as with most of the class, gaped incredulously at the two.

Alya just wished she had her phone right now.

* * *

Marinette tried her best not to show it at first, but she was bouncing with extra energy.

Don’t get her wrong, she loved being able to rest up properly now that Hawkmoth decided to take a 2-week vacation and the amount of homework her teachers gave her let up, but running around the bakery could only do so much to shed her excess energy.

She tried not to show it if only not to dishearten her best friend (who bemoaned her sore limbs despite finishing the course faster than anyone did so far), but with Adrien bouncing and fidgeting as much as she was, she decided to let go.

When M. D’Argencourt called their names—about _damn time_ —Adrien shot up from her side before holding his hand out to her. The familiar look in his eyes and the way he held out his hand to her made her pause as the pose struck a chord in her. The raven-head immediately shook off the odd feeling, took his hand, and bounced to the starting line.

The girl was momentarily disappointed when her crush let go of her hand, but when he turned to her with a look—no, _a challenge_ —a rogue thought made itself known: _Why does_ Adrien _, of all people, look like, like…_ Marinette blinked, stopped herself before she could finish the thought, and returned the look he gave her.

Being in gym class was one of the few circumstances that allowed the girl to act like her alter-ego sans the mask, hence her determination to _not_ screw this up. Especially when she was given a challenge. Her pride as Ladybug would not allow that.

With that in mind, the young designer bolted to the first obstacle the moment M. D’Argencourt blew on his whistle.

Marinette, being as focused as she was, didn’t notice Adrien hot on her heels.

 _This is nothing_ , she thought. _You perform gravity-defying stunts on a weekly basis, Marinette! You are going to ace this!_

The moment that thought passed through her head, she realized that she wasn’t going to stick her landing from the monkey bars.

Apparently, her Ladybug luck wasn’t enough to save her from her own clumsiness.

Just as she was bracing herself for the pain of twisting her ankle (or something of the like), the girl instead felt something—arms, she realized—curling around her waist and breaking her fall.

Marinette turned her head to see Adrien’s smirking face.

“Wha—”

“C’mon, Mari,” the blonde teased as he let her down from his arms. “As much as you seemed to enjoy _falling_ for me, we have an obstacle course to finish and I don’t want a lady such as yourself to _fall_ behind because of an injury.”

The raven-head allowed her eyes to widen before narrowing them in accusation at her partner. “Oh, _puh-lease_ , Agreste. The only one falling behind here is you.” And with that, she sped off to the next obstacle.

This time, she knew he was right at her heels.

As they sped through obstacle after obstacle, Marinette realized that she and Adrien—oddly enough—worked well together. Every time she struggled or slipped, he was always there to help her. When the blonde would pause in confusion, she was there to offer advice. And even when the roles were switched, they never had any trouble bouncing off of each other.

At any other time, the raven-head would either swoon, stutter, blush, or do something extremely embarrassing (or all of the above) in the face of Adrien’s flirty smirks, winks, and bows; his laughs, smiles, and glittering eyes. But not this time.

Right now, wind was in her hair, laughs and smiles were stretching her lips, effort was burning her muscles, and a steady stream of puns and flirty comments was heard from her one and only kitty.

_Wait, what?_

She dropped down from another obstacle, her eyes wide with her pulse thundering in her ears (not just from the workout), and turned to face her partner (her _partner_ ).

Adrien looked back at her with an equally shell-shocked expression. Suddenly, his lips moved to mouth a nickname she was all too familiar with: _‘My lady?’_

Marinette mouthed back. _‘_ Minou _, is that you?’_

The girl watched as he pulled an expression and slowly nodded his head; his tousled blonde locks swaying with the movement. At this point, she could practically see the leather cat ears flat on his head and his belt-tail curling around one of his legs.

Despite the shock of the new-found information gluing her tongue to the roof of her mouth, her adrenaline-induced brain managed to tell her body to let out a shuddering breath and place a (hopefully) comforting hand on her partner’s shoulder—a gesture that conveyed the words she couldn’t speak at the moment: _later._

Adrien let out a breath of his own and returned the gesture with a firm nod. He turned to the obstacle in front of them as Marinette returned the hand that rested on his shoulder to her side. The boy looked back at her with a playful glint in his eyes, despite the lingering shock, apprehension, and anxiety that lingered in their depths. “So, Mi—um, Marinette, what do you think of ditching the ropes and jumping over that wall?”

The girl in question dismissed the blonde’s mild slip of the tongue and turned to face the obstacle.

The last obstacle (if her counting wasn’t mistaken) was simply a ten-foot wall with ropes that dangled from the peak. Unbeknownst to her, her eyebrows were scrunched together and her tongue stuck out slightly from the corner of her mouth as she turned several ideas over in her head. The raven-head turned to face her partner, a smirk gracing her features. “Okay, Ch— _ahem,_ I mean, Adrien. Here’s what we’re going to do…”

A few moments later, Adrien was seen giving Marinette a boost as she jumped from his shoulders. The girl flipped herself in mid-air as she grabbed hold of her partner’s arms and propelled both of them across the wall. The two landed with a clean flourish, and with that, finished the course in a whopping 8 minutes flat.

The two teens only laughed at the cheers of their classmates and at the praise of their teacher, still holding onto each other’s arms.

Later, when the high of the exercise wore off, the teen superheroes would panic and blush, suddenly awkward and fidgety. Even later, after the teasing interrogations of their best friends and a sermon from their kwamis, they would meet on the rooftops of Paris, unsure yet willing to learn of where the sudden reveal would leave their partnership.

For now, they held onto each other, as thrilled on the grounds of their school court as they would be on the Parisian rooftops.

**Author's Note:**

> i found this thing in my folder of many many unfinished stuff and decided to finish it
> 
> i also wrote this a year or so ago, when i was still active in the fandom (idk what happens by season 3 aside from what people were salty about in the first two episodes of the season so like shfjhdfhdhf)
> 
> hope yall enjoy anyway :">


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